Air-brake apparatus for street-cars



No. 625,540. Patented May 23, |899. N. A. CHRISTENSEN. AIR BRAKE APPARATUS FOB STREET CARS.

Patented May 23, |899.

3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

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AIR BRAKE APPARATUS FOR STREET CARS.,

(No Model.)

w@ am m www s W Patented May 23, i899.

N. A. CHRISTENSEN. AIR BRAKE APPARATUS FUR STREET CARS.

(Application 'led oct. 17, 1895.) @lo Model.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

NIELS ANTON OHRISTENSEN, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

AIR-BRAKE APPARATUS FOR STREET-CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 625,540, dated May 23, 1899.

application inea oaobef 17,1895.

To @ZZ whom t mayconcern:

Be it known that I, NIELs ANTON CHRIS- TENSEN, a subject of the King of Denmark, residing at Milwaukee, in the countyof Milwaukee and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Air-Brake Apparatus for Street-Cars, which are fully set forth in the following specication, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l represents a plan of a car truck and frame with so much of the brake apparatus as is necessary to show my present invention; Fig. 2, a detail plan of one of the valve-cases with handle attached and partly broken away; Fig. 3, a vertical section of the same, taken on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2, with sections below of the air-pipes entire; Fig. 4, a plan section taken on the line 4 4 of Fig. 3 with valve adjusted for operation of brake; Fig. 5, the same view with valve adjusted for exhaust; Fig. 6, a detail section taken on the broken line 6 6 of Fig. 2 with the valve set for exhaust as in Fig. 5; Fig. 7, a detail bottom plan of a section of the valve-case cap; Fig. 8, adetail plan section taken on the line S 8 of Fig. 3; Fig. 9, a bottom plan of the valve-handle detached Fig. 10, a plan section taken on the line 10 10 of Fig. 3; Fig. 1l, a detail plan of the valve detached, a part being broken away; Fig. l2, a sectional view similar to the upper parts of Fig. 3, but showing a modification in the devices for holding the valve upon its seat; and Fig. 13, a plan view of the upper face of said valve detached from its seat and with the supporting-balls in position in the circular depression thereof.

In the drawings, Fig. 1 is upon a scale by itself. All the remaining gures are upon one and the same scale, but considerably enlarged from that of Fig. 1.

My invention relates to air-brake apparatus, such as shown in my prior application,

Serial No. A437,158, iiled March 22, 1893. In the aforesaid application the air-reservoir, brake-cylinder, pipe connections, and valves are shown and described in a general way; but no special construction of valves and cases is shown and described in connection with the pipes. The present invention relates to a particular construction and organization of these devices, but without includ- Serial No. 565,928. (No model.)

ing the special pumping mechanism set fort-l1 in the said prior applicationj which constitutes no part of the present invention.

In the drawings, A represents the axles of a street-car truck provided with wheels a, adapted to run upon the track-rails, as usual, and upon which is mounted the truck-frame A'. An air-reservoir B is supported on the truck in any convenient way, and at some other convenient point there is also mounted a brake-cylinder O. A pipe D runs from end to end of the car below the truck-frame and is connected by a branch pipe d with the airreservoir. This pipe is bent upward at each end to form an upright section d', as seen in Fig. 3 which section is extended above the platform at each end of the car. At the upper end of this upright portion of the pipe there is mounted a valve-case E and E at opposite ends of the car, which is circular in form and constructed with a deep circular recess e in its upper face, as seen in Fig. 3. It maythereforebecalledcup-shaped. Inthe bottom of this case there are four openings or ports c e2 e3 e4, all passing` up through the bottom and opening into the central recess or chamber. The reservoir-pipe D is connected at each end with the ports e' and e4 in the respective valve-cases, and thereby with the chamber in each. A second pipe-F at the brake-cylinder end of the car is connected with the valve-case through the said ports e', e4, and e2. This pipe' extends down by the side of the pipe D to about the plane of the brake-cylinder, and thence is bent and extended to the latter and connected therewith, as seen in Fig. 1. At the other end of the car a pipe F is connected to the valve-case E and is extended thence downward and then inward underneath the car lengthwise thereof until it reaches the pipe F, to which it is connected, as seen in Fig. l, and thereby connects also with the brake-cylinder. A disk valve G is fitted closely in the circular recess or chamber of the said valve-case, so as to be turned or oscillated therein. In the face of this valve there is provided any suitable means for connecting ports, such as a circular groove g, which extends nearly halfway around the valve or a sufficient distance to connect with both ports e' and e2 when adjusted, as seen in Fig. 4:. This position is IOO corresponding to the handle K, standing in line marked On in Fig. 2. The small port e4 is uncovered when the handle stands over the line e5 in Fig. 2. This position of the handle K is for making a slow or ordinary stop, while the position of the handle over the line marked On is for makinga quick stop. In the back or upper side of the valve there is also provided a circular groove g', preferably on the side opposite to the groove g. The portion of the valve outside of this groove is cnt away, thereby producing a depressed ledge g2, with right-angled shoulders g3 at each end thereof, as seen in Fig. l1. Preferably these shoulders are inset slightly at their inner ends, thereby producing shoulders g4 at right angles to the former.

The valve-case is closed by a cap H, through which fastening-screws pass into the flanged or widened upper edge of the case, as seen in Figs. 2 and 3. This cap has a dome-like projection h rising from its surface, through which the valve-stem I is passed. The valve is fastened to the lower end of this stemA by means of a pin z' entering the stem through a radial opening in the valve for this purpose, as seen in Fig. 3. The upperend of the valvestem is of irregular shape, as seen in Fig. 2, which shows this end or head of the stem cut away to form two right-angled faces on one side of the cylinder, producing a head c" of irregular contour. Within the dome 7L of the cap there is arranged a spiral spring J, coiled around the stem of the valve and fitted between the latter and the upper end of the dome. Obviously this spring acts to hold the valve down properly to its seat. The cap H is also provided on its under side with a short depending lug h', which is arranged to project down into the segmental space between the shoulders g3, as seen in Figs. 3 and 8. The cap-dome 7L is provided with an annular flange or collar h2, around the dome a little above the surface of the cap, thereby providing ,an annular groove or channel between the two, as seen in Fig. 3. On one side of the dome a notch h3 is cut through the collar, as seen in Fig. l0. The port e3 in the bottom of the valve-case opens out directly to the atmosphere and is simply an outlet or exhaust port.

A handle K is provided for attachment to the valve-stem, whereby the latter may be turnedr to oscillate the valve; but this handle is of special construction, wherebyit is adapted to be connected to or disconnected from the valve-stem at pleasure when adjusted to a certain point. This handle is provided with a head k, having a circular recess k', extending upward from the under side thereof, in which is fixed a die or bushing L of harder material, of circular form and constructed with an opening Zof the same irregular shape as the valve-stem head i', for which it thus provides a socket. As shown in the drawings, the die is held in its seat by ordinary fastening-pins Z set in between the die and it and the top of the cap, as seen in Fig.

The notch h3 in the collar obviously provides for the attachment of the handle to the valvestem, for it permits the toe on the depending arm to pass `down through the notch to allow the head of the handle to slip down over the head of the valve-stem, as seen in Figs. 3 and l0. After this connection is made I the valve is turned by turning the handle in either direction, in which movement, howl ever, the toe on the handle passes underneath the flange on the cap-dome and for the time lbeing fastens the handle to the valve-stem. l The handle may be detached from the valvestem when turned into position to brin-g the toe into register with the notch in the domeiange, as seen in Figs. 3 and 10, when evidently the handle may be taken off from the stem. It is obvious, however, that this attachment and detachment of the handle can be eected only by a suitable correlation between the irregular-shaped head on the valvestem and the notch in the dome-ange, which relation must correspond to that of the toe on the handle and the irregular-shaped recess in the latter. This will be readily understood, and the arrangement and organization of the parts are such that when brought into this adjustment, so that the handle may be detached, the valve will be left in a position which closes the exhaust-port and the port connecting with the air-reservoir. The three ports e', e2, and e3 are arranged about equidistant from each other, while port e4 is placed at some distance from e', opening into said e', as

seen in Figs. 4 and 5.

Amodification of the valve-holding devices described above and illustrated in Fig. 3 of the drawings is shown in Figs. l2 and 13. In this modification the cap-dome 7L and the lvalve-stem I, passing up through it, are the same as in Fig. 3, and the valve G is the same, except that on its upper face 2 it has a circular depression g5 for receiving a number of small balls VM around the valve-stem, and a ring N, with a similar depression on its under side, rests upon the projecting top of the balls, and a spring .I rests upon the' IOC IIO

Y full force.

The operation is as follows: The position of rest for the valve is midway between braking and exhaust adjustment, and I call it center position. This is the position in which the handle may be connected to or disconnected from the valve, as explained above. The toe on the handle is in line with the notch h3, as seen in Fig. lO. It is obvious that whenever the handle is detached the valve must be left in this position. This is what I have mentioned above as the center position and is shown in connection with the handle in Fig. 2. In this position of the valve the port connecting with the air-reservoir and the exhaust-port are both closed,and the adjustment is about midway between the limit of the throw for putting on the brakes and for exhausting. Now, suppose in starting out for the day the `end of the car on which the case E is located is the forward end. The brakes are usually operated from the front end of a car, and so the handle will be applied to the valve of this case E, and the valve in the case E at the rear end of the car will be at center position. Whenever it is desired to apply the brakes, the handle is turned to the right toward the point marked On in Fig. 2 of the drawings. This movement opens the ports e' and e4, connecting with the reservoir, when air immediately iiows from the latter and through the groove or recess g to the port e2., and thence through the pipe F to the brake-cylinder, where it acts in the usual way to apply the brakes. The recess or groove e, it will be seen, thus forms a connecting-passage between the three ports named, whereby connection is made between the air-reservoir and the brake-cylinder. The limit of this movement is fixed by the contact of the depending lug 7L with one of the shoulders g3, the lug passing into the notch in the latter, as seen in Fig. 8; but the valve is not thrown to its limit unless it is desired to set the brakes with lVhen it is desired to take the brake off, the handle is turned in the opposite direction past the center position and to the left thereof toward the point marked Off in Fig. 2 and is stopped at this point by the said depending lug coming in contact with the opposite shoulder g3, as seen at the right in Fig. 11. This is the position shown in Fig. 5, i' rom which it will be seen that the exhaustport is now opened. The port leading to the brake-cylinder is also opened; but the ports to the air-reservoir are closed. Of course an exhaust from the brake-cylinder directly into the open air follows. Now on its return trip the other end of the car will be at the front, as street-cars are usually run. It will therefore be desirable to operate the brakes from that end of the car. The attendant therefore turns the valve in case E into center position, removes the handle, and applies it to the valve in the case E', when this valve may be operated to apply and take off the brakes, as described above, the pipe F taking the place of the pipe F in the former instance.

Sometimes it is desired to hold the brakes steadily in application to the wheels, but not applied with full force-for instance, when the caris running down an incline. My improvement provides for making and retaining this application of the brakes, for after turning the handle to apply the brakes with the force desired upon turning it back immediately to center position the passage to the air-reservoir will be closed, but the exhaust will not be opened, and so the compressed air will be imprisoned between the valve-case and the brake-cylinder, thereby retaining the brakes in their application to the wheels with a steady force. They are of course taken off by turning the handle farther back, so as to open the exhaust. In the construction described and shown it will be noticed, further, thatv the valve is held down to its seat by a spring of sufficient strength for this purpose and without the necessity of any adjusting device. It will also be noticed that a valve not in use is left by the removal of the handle in an adjustment which absolutely prevents operation of the brakes through the valve-case to which it belongs and that the valve will remain in this position with reasonable certainty, because the handle by which it is operated is removed and the valve itself is held firmly to its seat by the spring, and this adj ustment of the valve is made certain always, because the handle cannot be removed until the valve is brought into the position named. It is obvious also that after the handle is applied to the valvestem, as described, it is securely held from any accidental detachment in all adjustments thereof, except at the single point of center position.

The operation of the modified construction shown in Figs. 12 and 13 is as follows: The ring N, arranged underneath the lower end of the spring J, resting on the small balls M in the top of the valve G, reduces the friction, and thereby the wear, between the spring J and the valve G. The upper rings O and P make a comparatively tight joint between the val ve-stem and the hole in the top of the capdome h, thereby preventing the escape of air from the valve-chamber, which would occur in the construction shown in Fig. 3 if a slight leak should exist between the valve and its case.

Having thus vdescribed my invention, what I claim to be new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. In a fluid-pressure brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a'valve device controlling communication between the reservoir and brake-cylinder and between the brake-cylinder and atmosphere and comprising a casing provided with four ports, two ports thereof having direct and uninterrupted connection with the reservoir, the third with the brake-cylinder and the fourth being an exhaust-port leading to the atmosphere, a valve located within the casing and adapted to connect said ports, said valve ITO in normal position connecting the brake-cylinder to the atmosphere to exhaust the brakecylinder and in applying the brakes gradually for ordinary service work, said valve connecting the brake-cylinder with one of said two reservoir-ports and adapted to connect the other of said two reservoir-ports with the brake-cylinder when a heavier application of the brakes is required.

2. In a duid-pressure brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a valve device controlling communication between the reservoir and brake-cylinder and between the brake-cylinder and atmosphere and comprising a casing provided with four ports, two of which ports connect with the reservoir, the third with the brake-cylinder and the fourth with the atmosphere, a valve located within the casing and provided with a recess which in normal position connects the brake-cylinder with the port to atmosphere to exhaust the brake-cylinder, and which for ordinary service work connects the brake-cylinder with one of said reservoir-ports and for quicker work connects the brake-cylinder with the other of said reservoir-ports. 3. In a fluid-pressure brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylp inder, a valve device controlling communication betwen the reservoir and brake-cylinder, and between the brake-cylinder and atmosphere and comprising a casing E provided with four ports and passages, the ports e and e' communicating with the reservoir, the port j e2 with the brake-cylinder and the port e3 with the atmosphere, a disk valve G movable 1 within the casing and provided with a circular recess g which in normal position connects the brake-cylinder with the port to atmosphere to exhaust the brake-cylinder, and which in service action connects the brakecylinder with one or both of said reservoirports, and means for turning the disk valve.

4. In a brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a valve device controlling communication between the reservoir and brake-cylinder and between the brake-cylinder and atmosphere, and comprisp ing a casing provided with four ports or passages, two of which are in direct uninterrupted communication with the reservoir, a

third port communicating with the brake-cyl- Y prising a casing having ports and passages communicating respectively with the brake-V cylinder, air-reservoir and atmosphere, a disk valve within the casing for governing said ports and a removable handle for operating said disk valve, which handle is removable only at a position between running or normal position and service position.

6. In a brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a valve device controlling communication between the brake-cylinder and atmosphere and between the brake-cylinder and reservoir, and comprising a casing provided with ports com municating respectively with the reservoir, brake-cylinder and atmosphere, a disk valve within the casing for governing said'ports or passages and provided with a single recess, an operating-handle connected to the valve, which handle when turned to one extreme position causes the valve to exhaust the brakecylinder and when turned to the other extreme position causes the valve to close the exhaust and admit pressure to the brake-cylinder from the reservoir, and means whereby such handle may be removed only at an intermediate and lap position, between the running and service position of the handle.

7. In a brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a valve device controlling communication between the brake-cylinder and atmospherev and between the brake-cylinder and reservoir and comprising a casing provided with ports communicating respectively with the reservoir, brakecylinder and atmosphere, a disk valve within the casing and provided with a recess for governing said ports, a stem for the valve, an operating-handle removably connected to the valve-stem, which handle in one extreme position causes the valve to exhaust the brakecylinder and in the other extreme position causes the valve to connect the brake-cylinder and reservoir and apply the brakes, a iange located upon the casing and provided with a central notch between the vrunning and service position of the handle, and a projecting piece connected to the handle and engaging under the flange and preventing the removal ofthe handle except at the intermediate position of the handle when the projecting piece is free to pass through said notch.

8. In abrake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a valve-casing having ports and passages communicating respectively with the brake-cylinder, the reservoir and the atmosphere, a valve within the casing for governing said ports and passages and a removable handle for operating said valve, which handle is removable only at a position between the brakes-on and the brakes-o position of the handle.

9. In a brake system, the combination of an air-reservoir, a brake-cylinder, a valve-casing having ports and passages communicating with the reservoir, the brake-cylinder and the atmosphere, a valve within the casing for IIO governing said ports and passages, a removable handle for operating said valve, aange connected with the casing and provided with a central notch located between the brakeson and the brakes-od position of the handle, and a projecting piece connected to the handle and engaging the iiange and preventing the removal oi' the handle except at said intermediate position of the handle when the projecting piece is free to pass through said notch.

l0. In air-brakes for street-cars, a valve, G, in combination with a Valve-stem, I, a casecap, H, up through which the valve-stem passes through an opening inthe top of said cap, two rings, O and P, the lower one of metal and the upper one of flexible material,

two washers being interposed between the upper end of the said spring and the top of case-cap H, and completely filling the space closely around the upper end of the valvestem I, between the top of case-cap H, and the upper end of said spring J, and completely filling the space between the case-cap and the valve-stem I, substantially as described.

.NIELS ANTON CHRISTENSEN.

W'itnesses:

A. A. MURRAY, I. A. HELMICH. 

